820 Hats!

Kristie just posted on her blog that she has 820 hats! I made 12 hats, and then had to concentrate on making bookmarks for the bookmark swap. There is a picture of most of the hats on Kristie's blog, and it's really awesome, so go check it out!
Here are pictures of the hats that I made.  4 Snowed Under hats from the January 2008 issue of Creative Knitting.

6 hats from the pattern I made up - pattern coming soon.

 

And my first two hats. These were the first two that I improvised. They're shaped a little bit like berets. 

 

I had a lot of fun making these hats - it's slightly addicting. My next knitting project is yet to be decided. There is one gift in the works, and 5 or more queued projects. Maybe I'll get them up on Ravelry sometime this week. 

Next post: What I bought while on vacation in NC.

~Sarah

More Hats

Hats 7-9 are done! Other than knitting, and a little mending last week, I haven't been doing any crafting.

The blue one still needs pompoms on the ends of the ties, and I will probably add some to the tops of the other two hats.

Below is the yarn I have left - there ought to be enough for at least 3 more hats, so I've upped my goal from 10 hats to 12 hats. The picture was taken before making the pink/brown hat on the left, so the dark maroon is gone, and there is just enough variegated pink to make a pompom.
Casting on for hat #10!
My goal for this week is to finish all the hats so that I can get started making bookmarks for the exchange! I've already figured out style/patterns, so all I have to do is get busy making them!
~Sarah

Where Did July Go?

It seems like just a few days ago that I wrote my last post! I did take both projects to craft night, however we ended up looking at pictures from our hostess's trip to Yellowstone National Park. I really need to buy myself a better camera...their pictures were really good, and several were taken from a moving car.



Hat update: I have completed 6 hats and started a seventh. For some reason I have one extra stitch on the earflap. I think it will be fine if I leave it there, though. I'm doing the Snowed Under Cap from the January 2008 issue of Creative Knitting. I will probably add a few pompoms to these hats to jazz them up, but I don't want to use up yarn that I might use on another hat.



I haven't done any other crafting, although I did join the bookmark swap that Amy at Ibby Bee is hosting. I already have two bookmarks figured out, and am contemplating what to do for a third one...



What is it with me and crafting deadlines?? I'm going to be walking around with knitting or some other project in my hands for the month of August! The hats need to arrive at their destination by August 28, and there is a one month deadline for the bookmarks - i.e. the end of August. After August is over, I think I'll take a break (a long break) from knitting. I'll work on cross stitch and sewing. Of course, I'll probably decide something entirely different when September gets here, but it's a semi-goal.

~Sarah



Note to self: stop wasting time on Facebook, and Start Knitting! My sister got me on Facebook, and I'm discovering things that waste my time in ways I've never imagined...Stitchbook is cool, though - it's kind of like Ravelry for your family, but not as cool as Ravelry.

Saturday Shopping Spree

Last Saturday Mom and I went shopping. We stopped at a paint store for a paint chip, and discovered a Farmer's Market nearby. We wandered around and bought a few plants and veggies. Then we went over to Golden Thread Needle Arts to see if the chart Mom ordered had come in yet. It hadn't, but they were having a trunk show, so we looked, and I found this really neat pattern. It's called 'Take Time to Knit', and has some really fancy stitches. Mom has one by the same designer (Jeanette Douglas Designs) called 'Take Time to Stitch'.



We went to Michaels to get some more yarn for Kristy's Hat Project. I should have enough yarn now to meet my goal of ten hats, plus one or two more.











 Since Barnes and Noble was in the same plaza, we just had to stop in. Their used book section is amazing, and I found this book for $7. We were in the craft section later and saw the same book full price - $25! I've wanted to learn this method of knitting socks, but the one time I tried I couldn't make heads or tails of the directions. The directions in this book seem to be very straightforward, and are diagrammed very well.



On Friday night I came down with a Summer cold. It's one of those where you don't feel sick enough to go to bed, but not well enough to do anything productive. I think Carrie at Knitted Bear had the same thing.  I did mange to finish hat #4. I tried starting hat #5, but messed up and will have to rip it out and start over.

~Sarah

Crafty Pondering: Should I take my knitting or cross stitch to the craft night on Thursday? Knitting or cross stitch, cross stitch or knitting....Maybe I'll take both!

Knitting Hats

I was planning to post this sooner, but I've been totally exhausted since Wednesday night. My sister flew to New Mexico on a missions trip Friday morning. Since she's never flown before, we all drove her (ok, only one person drove) to the Buffalo airport. We left our house at 4 AM. My Mom and I decided that there wasn't much point in going to bed and getting up 3-4 hours later, so we didn't go to bed. We drank lots of coffee and watched Pride and Prejudice. I finished a hat, got sleepy, drank coffee, ate pizza, drank more coffee....About the time we got to the airport, the caffeine and adrenaline kicked in to high gear. I was pretty chatty driving home, and when we got home, I was wide awake and ready to go to a furniture sale. It was pointed out that the stores weren't open. Oh well. Mom and Dad went to bed, and I...well, I don't remember much of what I did. I was too keyed up to sleep, although I recall dozing for a couple of hours. I almost finished a third hat last night, but between being so tired and helping my Dad investigate my printer problem, it's not done. Today Mom and I went shopping in East Rochester (pictures later) and after we came home I discovered that I was exhausted. Still haven't finished hat #4, but did 2 rounds.

Ok, pictures of hats 2 and 3, and then I'm going to bed so that I won't fall asleep while teaching the 2's and 3's class tomorrow morning.Hat number 2 (on the left) is from Creative Knitting January 2008, the Snowed under Cap. Hat 3 (on the right) is a variation on the pattern I'm creating.Sarah

PS~ Thank you to the voters in my poll. Once I finish the hats I will start working on a kit.

ETA - Since I used a variegated yarn I didn't embroider the snowflakes on cap #2.

300 Hat Project

Kristy from Ok! What's next?? started this project. She will be visiting and helping at several orphanages in the Ukraine in September/October. One of the orphanages cares for special needs children, and ..."if I could round up 300 hats, it would be like Christmas for these kids. This is a very poor area and these orphanages get very little funding, they rely almost completely on individual support."
I won't be knitting a hat a day, like Kristy, but I do want to make at least 10. RC at Rabies on my shoe is collecting hats from knitters on the East Coast to send to Kristy. She is also hosting a contest. The Hooks & Needles yarn shop is offering a 10% discount on yarn for the hats to local shoppers, and free shipping to those of us who aren't local. There is also a group on Ravelry called Kristys Hat Quest.

I just finished my first hat. I used Bernat Alpaca Natural Blends in Persimmon. The pattern is loosely based on this one, but I made several changes. I will try it again, and once I get it just right, I'll post the pattern. Thanks to my Mumble from Build-a-Bear for helping model the hat.